Australia: Guardian appointed to decide unconscious woman's fate

An Australian man accused of trying to murder his wife has lost a legal battle for the right to decide whether to keep her on life support, in a case that has drawn comparisons with the drawn out US court battle over the final days of Terri Schiavo.

An Australian man accused of trying to murder his wife has lost a legal battle for the right to decide whether to keep her on life support.

The case has drawn comparisons with the drawn-out US court battle over the final days of Terri Schiavo, in terms of deciding who may have a right to decide the fate of an unconscious person.

In the Australian case, the woman's husband, who could face a murder charge if his wife dies, wants her kept alive. Schiavo’s husband argued for ending her life support, in a long legal fight with her parents.

Maria Korp had been missing for several days when she was found throttled and unconscious in the boot of her car in the southern city of Melbourne on February 13. She had been trapped in the car for five days.

Her husband Joe Korp, 47, and his former lover, Tania Herman, 38, were arrested and charged with attempted murder, conspiracy to murder and intentionally causing serious injury. Both are in custody pending trial.

Doctors at the hospital where the 50-year-old woman is being treated, say she is unresponsive to external stimulation and that she receives her food and oxygen through tubes.

They said she stands a 50% chance of survival if her breathing apparatus is switched off, but that she would certainly die within a few weeks if her feeding tube is removed.

A Victoria state tribunal approved a request on Thursday by the hospital to assign a guardian to decide on Korp’s future, including whether to continue her medical treatment.

If Korp’s breathing apparatus and feeding tube are removed and she dies, charges against her husband could be upgraded to murder, the tribunal heard.

Lawyers for the husband have said Korp, a Catholic, would oppose ending life support on religious grounds.

The case has raised comparisons in Australia to the long-running court battle between the husband and family of Terri Schiavo, the brain-damaged Florida woman who was on life-support for 15 years but who died last month after a court ordered the removal of her feeding tube.

Dr Leslie Cannold, a bioethicist at the University of Melbourne, said it can be difficult for a court to decide who is the most qualified person to act on behalf of an incapacitated patient.

“The main concern that will come up (in court) is whether that person is capable of acting in the best interests of (the unconscious) person,” Cannold said. She said Korp’s husband “clearly has a conflict of interest” because he could face a murder charge if she dies.

Cannold said the court can assign a state official as guardian if no relative can be found who is qualified to act in the patient’s best interest.

Korp’s 27-year-old daughter, Laura De Gois, has said she supports the decision to appoint a state official as her mother’s guardian.

Joe Korp is scheduled to appear before the Melbourne Magistrates Court on May 25 to apply for bail.